Heretofore, biological materials, such as samples generated for diagnostic testing, have been shipped in foam, e.g., polystyrene foam, cases comprising two portions having cavities or openings for receiving individual sample vials. The portions of the case may be fastened together to hold the vials inside, and the case may be placed in a conventional shipping box. While polystyrene foam cases may provide some shock absorbency to protect the samples, they do not sorb leaking fluid if one or more vials breaks. As a result, biological material may leak through the case and box, in which case persons handling the shipping boxes will also contact the material.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,560,069 discloses a package for hazardous materials that includes a metal can, in which non-resilient and frangible foam elements are inserted for cushioning a bottle of such material and absorbing leakage if the bottle breaks. The foam elements are formed of open-celled, phenol-formaldehyde foam. Fiberboard spacers are provided to isolate the foam elements from the bottle to protect the foam. Because the foam elements are non-resilient and frangible, they will break down under impact or when crushed, with the result that their ability to absorb fluid is reduced when it is most needed. Moreover, in some cases, the leakage may only be detected after opening the can, for example, if the can is undamaged.
Various other containers or bags for holding samples of materials include a bag employing ethyl cellulose as a sorbent disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,573,578; shipping bags having a layer of cushioning material disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,768,724, 3,948,436 and 4,087,002; and a specimen mailer disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,621,994 comprising nested plastic cups separated by resilient foam and a divider structure within the inner cup for holding four test tubes. U.S. Pat. No. 3,871,521 discloses a container comprising two shells filled with a foamed cellular polymer.